I've never heard this called the Ohio river trail before. Friendship park is a favorite of mine. Interesting park/path design that keeps your interest. Would be fun with small children... with a bike, or bring crayons/paper to do rubbings on lots of interesting things. Smale is new and impressive. Lots to keep kids busy - giant chimes, a flying pig to ride in, family size swings, water fountains to run through. Dress small kids for water, b/c they will want to get in! It's downtown, so you have to deal with traffic, events, parking. That's what keeps us from visiting more often.

This is a great link of several different urban riverfront parks. You can watch the history of Cincinnati park design as you walk along the river. Smale Park is the newest, with lots of young plants, activities for kids and even a row of porch swings for enjoying the view of the river. Sawyer Point is a fairly old park with mature trees and well loved green spaces. The Theodore Berry International Friendship Park has a diverse selection of plants and structures and is interesting to walk through.